Tigers center Moussa Cisse slams home two of his eight points. Cisse finished with four boards and two blocks. photo by Don Mooney
by Don Mooney
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Memphis Tigers didn’t disappoint fans this afternoon. Another tale of two-halves victory where the #19th ranked University of Memphis men’s basketball team eek out a 74-70 win a over East Carolina inside FedExForum.
ECU came out strong defensively, holding the high-powered Tigers offense to just five points in the first four minutes, but the Pirates couldn’t buy a basket, missing all eight of their shots before the first media timeout.
ECU Pirates swarm Tigers guard PJ Haggerty in first half. photo by Don Mooney
Felton would finally break the seal on the basket for the Pirates with a driving layup at the 14:19 mark of the first half and the senior would score the first six Pirate points until Trevion LaBeaux converted a tough layup with 10 minutes to go in the half.
Memphis came out early with a 11-2 lead to start the game. East Carolina followed that with a 7-0 run before the Tigers took off on a 16-0 run to build an 18-point advantage, their largest of the game. The Pirates again had an answer with a 10-point run of their own before Memphis scored nine straight in response. In a half full of runs, the Tigers outscored the Pirates 10-5 in the final three minutes to go into the half ahead 38-24.
Tigers mash the gas in the first half after creating ECU turnover. photo by Don Mooney
ECU came out of the locker room with a flurry as back-to-back steals and scores from Riley ignited an ECU run as the Pirates pulled within five points but five turnovers within three minutes would allow Memphis to regain control of the game.
photo by Don Mooney
The Pirates’ resolve would not waver as ECU clawed back again, cutting the lead to four after baskets from Walker and Felton and the Pirates would get within two points on a three-point play from Walker that made the score 52-50 with eight and a half minutes to go.
The Tigers shot 41.0 percent for the game, led by guard PJ Haggerty, who scored 25 points on 7-of-16 shooting, going 10-for-10 from the stripe.
Senior guard Tyrese Hunter contributed 14 points while also recording four rebounds, two assists, and a block. Forward Dain Dainja had a solid game off the bench, scoring 10 points and going 4-of-7 from the floor.
photo by Don Mooney
The Pirates came out of the break with a vengeance, going on a 9-0 run in the opening two minutes of the second half to trim the Memphis lead to five. Haggerty responded with a 6-0 run of his own to extend the advantage to 11 points.
ECU tied the game at 68-68 with 1:11 remaining after another three-point play from Walker but the Tigers made all their free throws down the stretch to prevent the Pirates from pulling off a stunning win.
photo by Don Mooney
East Carolina was led by RJ Felton’s double-double (20 points, 13 rebounds) and a 23-point, 7-rebond performance from big man C.J. Walker.
ECU blocked seven shots, tying the most by a Tiger opponent this season (Virginia, LA Tech – 7). The Pirates also added 11 steals, which are tied for the second-most by an opposing team this season.
Undefeated in conference play Memphis hits the road for a pair of contests next week. The Tigers travel to Temple on Thursday (6 p.m. CT, ESPN2) and then to Charlotte next Sunday (2 p.m. CT, ESPN2 or ESPNU).